Senior Solo Travel (cruise ship, hotels, Paris, Amsterdam)
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If I were to travel now, I would try and avoid the cities more and travel to smaller towns in different countries. Paris of today isn't what it was 15 years ago. Just thought I would throw that in there as cities are really different now with elevated crime. You will probably be fine, but it is different. I think Tuscany would be nice. Or small French towns with bakeries. Love the food over there.
Single "penalties" or charges are a function of how you look at the price.
Cruises are priced "per person" so if you are solo in the room, you usually are paying twice the per person rate since the cruise company has a targeted revenue amount for that cabin.
Hotel room are priced "per room" so if you are solo in the room, you pay the per room cost; no surcharge for going solo.
Note that the cost is the same: targeted revenue per cabin or room. It's just in how the rooms are being sold. When "per person" is quoted as being the price assuming double occupancy, the room cost is the same whether single or double occupancy.
There are cruise lines that do not charge the full cabin cost to single cruisers. Crystal many times has rates that charge less than the full cabin rate for single cruisers. Some cruise lines have cabins are are indeed single cabins are are priced as singles, not doubles.
Hostels are great places for singles to stay, even older ones, and you pay by the bed. Staying in hostels in my 70s, I always felt welcome, and hostelers very open to socialization with older travelers. Often invited to join in with another hosteler for a day's activity. And you won't be the only senior there, either.
Overseas Adventure Travel does not have a single supplement. Groups are typically fewer than a dozen people. I took them to India and Nepal in 2018 and to Bolivia in 2020. The latter was supposed to be Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador and the Galapagos but then COVID became a major problem and we got sent home early. Pricey but absolutely worth it. I took the credit from the unused portion of the 2020 trip and am booked for the rest of the trip next May and for Eastern Europe in August of 2022.
I've also taken very pleasurable trips on my own, to Iceland and to Scotland with a side trip to Paris for 2 days. Once in awhile I'll get on a group tour of an attraction so I have some human interaction but I'm fine on my own most of the time- happy to do nerdy things like compare Icelandic and English on the information panels in the museums without holding anyone up, or wander in Paris till I get tired and then find my way to the nearest metro.
Like others i recommend solo travel. My DH and i have travelled quite a bit in Europe, And Turkey on our own. We always rent a car and find a place outside the city and near a train station if possible. Once we landed in Barcelona and stayed in a small sea side place away and drove in every day. We drove all along the French rivera, finding BnB a.ong the way all the way into Italy. So memorable. We didnt have a decent map for Turkey, none available. We traveled by air, bus and rental car. We stayed in a hostel in one place which was simply wonderful, dinner of grilled trout and salad served in a tent, communal eating. Later on we have been taking tours but they simply do not compare to traveling by yourself. With a good rental and GPS it is the best.
On tours half the time i am not sure where we are and the whole trip is blur.
Like others i recommend solo travel. My DH and i have travelled quite a bit in Europe, And Turkey on our own. We always rent a car and find a place outside the city and near a train station if possible. Once we landed in Barcelona and stayed in a small sea side place away and drove in every day. We drove all along the French rivera, finding BnB a.ong the way all the way into Italy. So memorable. We didnt have a decent map for Turkey, none available. We traveled by air, bus and rental car. We stayed in a hostel in one place which was simply wonderful, dinner of grilled trout and salad served in a tent, communal eating. Later on we have been taking tours but they simply do not compare to traveling by yourself. With a good rental and GPS it is the best.
On tours half the time i am not sure where we are and the whole trip is blur.
That's nice, but it's not solo travel if you're with your DH. OP is talking about traveling on his own, as his wife passed away.
That's nice, but it's not solo travel if you're with your DH. OP is talking about traveling on his own, as his wife passed away.
I understand. One can do what we did solo as well. I just wanted to give him some data and alternate ideas. In fact one time we had a woman solo from Connecticut hitch a ride with us in Turkey. She is in fact the one who suggested we stay in the hostel which turned out to be a nice experience. Group travel as a couple is not the best way to travel, and doing that solo is even less appealing. Although some companies do better than others such as OAT, and give a small break in room rate.
Like others i recommend solo travel. My DH and i have travelled quite a bit in Europe, And Turkey on our own. We always rent a car and find a place outside the city and near a train station if possible. Once we landed in Barcelona and stayed in a small sea side place away and drove in every day. We drove all along the French rivera, finding BnB a.ong the way all the way into Italy. So memorable. We didnt have a decent map for Turkey, none available. We traveled by air, bus and rental car. We stayed in a hostel in one place which was simply wonderful, dinner of grilled trout and salad served in a tent, communal eating. Later on we have been taking tours but they simply do not compare to traveling by yourself. With a good rental and GPS it is the best.
On tours half the time i am not sure where we are and the whole trip is blur.
edited to say sorry, I posted this before I read the posts from others who'd pointed it out.
cb2008,
The poster lost his wife. You recommended solo travel to him and then launched into an entire post about you and your DH's exciting traveling experiences. I'm sure you meant no harm but it was the wrong time and place for it. He doesn't need to be reminded of the wonderful travels one can have with their spouse as he has already mentioned that prior to her death, they traveled together. He likely has warm memories from that. Currently he is widowed and asking about traveling as a solo. That is quite different experience from traveling with a spouse.
I understand. One can do what we did solo as well. I just wanted to give him some data and alternate ideas. In fact one time we had a woman solo from Connecticut hitch a ride with us in Turkey. She is in fact the one who suggested we stay in the hostel which turned out to be a nice experience. Group travel as a couple is not the best way to travel, and doing that solo is even less appealing. Although some companies do better than others such as OAT, and give a small break in room rate.
Why do you say it's less appealing solo? As a 95% solo traveler by circumstance, not by choice, I prefer group travel so that I have a built-in group of people I can get to know and share the experience with. Have you done any solo travel (only yourself without a travel companion) in a group and had a bad experience with it?
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